At least 18,546 indigent families are set to be captured in a biometric register for access to Universal Health Care in Trans Nzoia county.
The program spearheaded by the national government through the National Hospital Insurance Fund in partnership with the county government was rolled out this week.
County Health executive Clare Wanyama who graced the launch of the exercise through her department in liaison with the National Safety Net program, indigent groups were identified.
Identification exercise begun last year following a call by the national government and the vulnerable target groups were listed for the scheme.
Ms Wanyama disclosed that a total of 18,546 households were identified to be poverty-stricken and a sum of 37,092 are earmarked for the first phase of the scheme.
Both the natiinal and county government will cover an equal number of households shared from the sum total with the Trans Nzoia administration earmarking Sh 111,278,184 million for the initial phase.
The amount will finance for the 18,546 households with the national government financing the other half.
Biometriy data capturing begun on August 9 and will run through for four days ending on August 12, 2021.
All the identified indigents have since been asked to avail their national identity cards, their spouses ID cards and children’s birth certificates where applicable.
Pointing out that registration centers were evenly distributed across the county, Mrs Wanyama called on the identified indigents to visit the centers so as to ease the exercise.
“The mobile biometric registration team shall also be deployed where there is need especially where there is a lot of difficulty for the target indigents to access the registration centers,” said Ms Wanyama.
The county assembly health committee chair who is also the county assembly member for Sitatunga ward Dr Daniel Kaburu applauded the initiative.
He noted that the program will boost access to health services in the county through the capitation funds from the program at the county level.
Dr Kaburu also added that through the program the county government will have improved health care infrastructure which will be of great importance to its residents.
“We would like to thank both the two levels of government for the great initiative. As members of the county assembly, we strongly support this initiative,” he said.
Dr. Kaburu further noted that the move will reduce the number of fundraisings to cater for medical bills once its fully rolled out.
Rift Valley region NHIF Managing Director Robert Otom observed that through the partnership, county governments stand to gain a lot.
He noted that a huge portion of the funds that the health insurance schemes will be paying up for the members will be go back to the county health facilities hence a chance to boost service delivery.
“Apart from the general outpatient services the UHC insurance cover offers other health services like surgeries, oncology, radiology among others services” Mr Otom said.
The reginal manager called on both the national and the county government to mobilise all the members of the public identified under the program to register in the biometrics.
